Air France (AF) and SITAONAIR have announced a new deal to deliver seamless aircraft data to AF’s top-flight operations and maintenance optimization programs.

Under the partnership, SITAONAIR’s new e-Aircraft DataCapture solution will capture, dissect and deliver high-quality, immediate aircraft data, significantly bolstering performance monitoring across Air France Airbus aircraft. SITAONAIR’s deployment of DataCapture across AF’s Airbus fleet began in January 2017.

The e-Aircraft DataCapture system works by collecting, compressing and encrypting an aircraft’s Quick Access Recorder (QAR) or Digital ACMS Recorder (DAR) data, and ensures it is automatically and immediately transmitted after landing, using 3G, to a ground server provided by SITAONAIR. The complete data is then sent to Air France’s data analysis system for instant analysis and response.

Many airlines manually collect aircraft post-flight and health data as part of an overnight maintenance regime, meaning a delay of hours after a flight has landed before data is retrieved.

Replacing manual collection with SITAONAIR’s automatic e-Aircraft DataCapture equips airlines with instant detailed insight into their fleets, from how aircraft are operating, to investigating incidents and performing maintenance diagnostics.

This cost- and time-efficient solution also helps airlines optimize staffing resources and supports seamless transitions, which help reduce the time aircraft spend on the ground.